Who can I Plug?

I’m primed, ready and full of un-fired Plugs, so who can I target?

The quickest and easiest way to answer this question is probably to ask who can’t you Plug?

One; you can’t Plug your own business. That’s a given (and against the rules). If you own a business, you can ask others to Plug you, but giving yourself praise is not an option.

Two; you can’t Plug your neighbour because they brought your washing in for you. As much as we’d love to see ordinary people getting Plugs, this is a business site, and it exists for customers and businesses. Not neighbours. (Who knows, perhaps in the future…?)

Three; you can’t Plug your coach, boss, employee or teacher (see above)

Four; you can’t Plug a rock. Or a tree or a bird or a flower.

Well that about covers it.

What you can Plug is your hairdresser, your lawyer, your chimney sweep or your dentist. You can Plug the hardware shop down the road, the video store, the Chinese takeaway and the home brew supplies store.

You can also Plug an individual real estate salesperson (separately from the company or office) and the Avon representative who leaves stuff in your letterbox.

The fact is that ANYONE who has customers can receive Plugs. And as a Plugger, it may be up to you to remind them of this possibility.

If you have used a business or a sole trader or even a farmer’s market stall, and you’re happy with what they did for you, Plug them. They’ll appreciate it – and you’ll be rewarded for it in more ways than one.

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Anonymous, or obvious?

When you sign up as a Registered User of iplug – a ‘Plugger’ – you have the opportunity to set your ALIAS. This has to be unique on the site, but it can be anything; your nickname from school, your first name followed by 001 or a 69, your favourite X-Men character… anything goes.

But have you considered using your real name?

Before you shout ‘I don’t want people knowing my real name!’ consider this;

You are a consumer. You are making comments on businesses with the express purpose of improving customer service in general. But what about your own benefits? It’s all very well to contribute to the greater cause of service improvement, but how about the way companies and businesses treat you personally?

If you use your real name and give a glowing Plug to your hairdresser, what do you think will happen the next time you visit? Okay, it might be a little embarrassing. But the fact is that people like to be liked (business owners and managers are no exception) and people tend to like the people who like them back.

See where we’re going here?

Your hairdresser, knowing that you obviously like them (which you proved with your well-worded, accurate Plug) will now treat you as a VIC – Very Important Customer. This may not have happened if your ALIAS was SNOOPYFLUFFYKINS.

And so what if the whole wide world learns that you reward good businesses with Plugs (or might be prepared to Slap the poor ones)? If you’ve ever been in business yourself, you know quite well that customers who have given you positive testimonials in the past are welcomed back with open arms, and your staff are made very clear on that fact.

So maybe this is one of the exceptions to the rules of ‘protecting your identity on the ‘net’. Of course you don’t need be be completely accurate, with middle names and DOB. Your first name and initial of your surname might be enough. Or your business name; ‘BUGCATCHER’.

I’d also add that you should still be careful what you say; “XYZ Locksmiths were really cool getting me into my house at 123 Alfabet Street when I shut myself out! Their advice that I hide a key outside (in the big plant on the deck) was wonderful!”

Keep Plugging!

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I don’t want to be Slapped!

It seems the biggest barrier to businesses joining the iplug community and collecting feedback from their customers is the fear of being Slapped.

“I don’t want to ask a customer what they thought of my service in case they tell me they didn’t like it.”

Forward-thinking businesspeople know this is a crock. It’s a bit like saying “I don’t want to drive into the city to accept the award in case we have an accident on the way, or the car breaks down.”

Back at the turn of the century the thought of purchasing something online from a complete stranger, and paying for it first, was unthinkable. “What if they don’t send the goods?” or “What if the goods arrive and are damaged?” TradeMe got off to a slow and grinding start. But things soon hotted up when the early users dipped their toes in the water of online auction shopping and didn’t get burnt (please excuse the mixed metaphor). Now half the population think nothing of paying for goods from a stranger and trusting in the site and the system to protect them.

And that’s the key; trusting in the site and the system.

People are scared to list their businesses on a site that allows customers to say things about them – because they haven’t actually done it yet! And remember, you have protection! Look at it logically;

  • In the beginning the only customers who go to iplug to Plug you will be the ones YOU direct there yourself. (And if you have a disgruntled customer in your past, you’re hardly likely to ring or email them and say ‘give us a Plug’ are you?)
  • In the beginning the only members of the general public who will see your Plugs are those YOU direct there and say ‘check out our Plugs!’
  • We used the term ‘Slap’ for negative feedback because it’s harsh. A customer or client is hardly likely to Slap you because you sold out of papers, or because the root canal job cost them a small fortune. If they’re NOT happy with you, they just won’t Plug you.
  • And finally, all Slaps are moderated by iplug. A Slap can only come from a genuine customer or client of yours, and must be detailed and accurate. “These pr**ks are hopeless!” will not get through the moderation process. “He promised I would get a tax refund of $10,000 but it was only $8,780!” is a real Slap – but only if it is accurate and from a genuine client. Don’t forget you also have the right to reply to Slaps too. “If this client had disclosed all of their income in the first place, they would have gotten more than 10k.”

Before we go, check out the big players on TradeMe or eBay. It’s almost impossible to have a 100% feedback and have more than a hundred comments. Even the best of the traders attract complainers, and what’s the best way to take them out of the equation? Pile up the Plugs! 99.9% positive is common, rendering the tiny minority who complain insignificant.

All of which means, before you worry about getting Slapped, worry instead about your opposition getting Plugs, and taking the lead in the fight for the consumer.

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A Plug is like a Smile

“A smile is a curve that sets everything straight” : Phyllis Diller

“A winning smile makes winners of us all” : Anonymous

“Life is short but a smile takes barely a second” : Cuban proverb

“Wear a smile and have friends; wear a scowl and have wrinkles” : George Eliot

“If you’re not using your smile, you’re like a man with a million dollars in the bank and no chequebook” : Les Gilbin

“Smile, and the world smiles with you” : Anonymous

A lot of people have written about smiles. And as you can see, a pattern is forming. As a general rule if you smile at someone, they will smile back (or at least wonder what it is that you know and they don’t).

Smiling is easy, doesn’t cost a thing, and brings many rewards. While the opposite – scowling or frowning – only forms wrinkles and sets the world against you.

A few people have asked the question; “Why should I plug someone? What’s the point?”

As part answer, here’s another quote;

“Nothing makes people so worthy of compliments as receiving them. One is more delightful for being told one is delightful – just as one is more angry for being told one is angry” : Katherine F. Gerould

If you Plug someone for being happy and continuously smiling as they work, they’re far more likely to be smiling the next time you visit them – and smiles are contagious. But if no one ever Plugs the smiler, there’s a chance that it might wear off.

This holds true for all business activities. If you don’t tell the business operator what it is that you like, then you risk that part of the operation disappearing.

There was a case a few years ago involving a bakery in a small city in the US. They had a shop from which they sold all their products, and behind the long counter there was a plate glass window through to the bakery. The customers could watch the bakers toil away at the ovens while they paid for their buns and bread and cakes. Then in a shop revamp, the window was taken away. And guess what? Business dropped off. It turned out that in a world of centralized bakeries delivering product by truck to branches, it was comforting for the customers to see actual bakers making real products. The thing is, though, none of the customers had ever told the bakery that this was the case. (As a result of a customer survey the window was put back, and subsequent marketing shouted ‘see the bakers at work!’)

If you like what you’re receiving, tell the supplier. Give a compliment, give a smile.

Give a Plug.

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